The Elite were on their feet: Elite 80 Basketball Showcase comes to Greensboro

Special to Greensborsports.com courtesy of www.BasketballElite.com:

High School Basketball Showcase Descends on Greensboro

By Marcus Shockley

A chilling rain struck the pavement
outside of Greensboro’s sprawling Proehlific Park sports complex on
the morning of March 27, misting the few early cars that had arrived
in the parking lot. Only a few days before, North Carolina had been
enjoying 70 degree days and picnics, but now it seemed like winter
was making it a point to remind everyone of one of the most
unpleasant cold seasons in memory.

As the dimly lit interior of the park
came to life, high school athletes, all of them tall and athletic,
began finding their way through the damp conditions into the gyms,
undeterred by the weather and focused on the task at hand; play high
level basketball, become better players and showcase their abilities
against some of the best players in the Triad and surrounding areas.

The ScoutsFocus Elite 80 Spring
Showcase brings dozens of elite North Carolina high school basketball
players into Greensboro for another chance to impress any media and
college coaches who might attend. Past events have been covered by
well known media outlets such as Slam magazine and HoopMixTape, and
have featured Division I talented players who went on to become well
known names in recruiting circles. Now another crop of players is
vying for the chance to make their own name.

There are some college coaches and
media in attendance, however, delays during check in and some
disorganization leave the players shooting their warm up shots longer
than intended. After a brief introduction by a former pro basketball
player, he puts them through the paces of drills with the help of a
few other coaches, and then the teams are divided up and the real
action gets under way.

The style of play is loose, and fast
paced. Some teams work together better than others, a side effect of
being paired with new teams on site. Some teams look like they’ve
played together for a while, running fast breaks to perfection and
scoring with great ball movement. Other teams find themselves out of
position on defense and confused as to who is doing what. However,
the skill level is high, and many of the players take the game play
seriously, even when defense lags and looks more like an all-star
game.

Some standout players start to emerge,
such as 6’7” Christian Hairston, a sophomore who plays for
Greensboro Day and is attending the showcase one day after playing in
the Carolina Challenge in Raleigh. Hairston is fluid and quick, a
blur up and down the court and deadly in the transition game.
Hairston has interest from several colleges already and may be one of
the players who becomes well known in recruiting circles by the time
he graduates high school.

Other players who excel include Chase
Ward-McEwan, a 6’2” combo guard who is explosive off the floor and
can dunk with ease. Ward-McEwan played for famed Oak Hill before
making the move to his current school, Parrot Academy. Ward-McEwan is
among a bevy of strong, poised guards attending the camp, including
Aaron Smith, a 5’9” senior from Mt. Zion; Lindsey Johnson, a 6’1”
senior from Cary Christian School who knows how to score in several
different ways; Denzell Hosch, 5’10”, a vocal leader and a player
who is a sharpshooter from mid range and from deep; and Lacurtis
Latimore, 6’1”, a strong player who is dangerous when he has the
ball and can finish his shot even when he’s being fouled.

Several big men attended as well,
including John Egbunu, 6’10”, class of 2013 and attending Mt. Zion,
and Scheck Sero, 6’9”, 2012, also attending Mt. Zion.
Unfortunately, the event ran too long for an All-Star game, despite
several players putting in solid performances.

To get more details and to read more on this event go to www.BasketballElite.com

Marcus Shockley is the Director of
BasketballElite.com, which scouted the Elite 80 event and has
extensive player evaluations of many of the featured players in the
Triad as well as national events. Basketball Elite’s scouts and
writers have covered major basketball events such as the NBA summer
league, Chris Paul’s Elite Guard Skills Camp, the Jordan Brand
Classic and Bob Gibbons’ Tournament of Champions.

One thought on “The Elite were on their feet: Elite 80 Basketball Showcase comes to Greensboro

  1. You can also catch info on Sharwyn McGee(Ragsdale HS), Reed Lucas(Greensboro Day) and Deuce Bello’s little brother 5’7 Sadeeq Bello(Westchester) when you click on the Basketball Elite link……..

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